Primal Heat 2 Read Online Free PDF Page A

same way, ripped and unable to be worn again.
    Nivea didn’t seem to mind as she turned and was ready to climb into the tub. Of course Eli reached out to pick her up, moving close before kneeling to set her into the tub. There were no bubbles, only hot water to soothe the aching muscles he was sure she probably had.
    When she sat back, sighing as the steam immediately went to work on her body, Eli was about to stand up and walk away. He would go to the sink to retrieve the cloth and soap to wash her. Then he would carry her out and cover her delectable body up before he did something he knew was selfish considering the circumstances.
    “Why did he want to kill you?”
    The question stilled him instantly.
    “He said you’d killed his brother. Who was he?”
    Eli did not want to answer either of those questions. He did not want to talk about this situation, especially not with her. But how could he deny her? She’d taken a knife in the shoulder because of what he’d done all those years ago. How could he not tell her everything that had led up to the moment she’d been assaulted?
    To keep his thoughts focused Eli moved across the room to obtain the cloth and soap. Going to his knees beside the tub he dipped them both into the water until the cloth was soaped then proceeded to rub gently at the blood on her cheek.
    “His name is Pedro Rimas,” he said, speaking quietly. “His brother was Lonzo and he’d been involved with a woman named Leanne.”
    Eli hadn’t said her name for so long it felt awkward slipping past his lips. He moved the cloth down her neck, rubbing softly until the streaks were gone.
    “One night I witnessed Lonzo assaulting Leanne. He knocked her out cold like she was some guy on the street. I just reacted,” he said, not shrugging the way he felt like doing. Instead he kept his gaze on the cloth and all the places that blood needed to be cleaned from.
    The words were coming and he was minutely grateful, because denying her this explanation was just simply not an option. But his mind was quickly losing focus. The darkness of his past combined with the sensual feeling of the present. He’d never bathed a woman before, never wanted to do something so intimate, and yet, right now, all he wanted was to wash her completely clean of all the anger and rage he’d sent her way this afternoon.
    Clearing his throat of the lump that had slowly begun to form there, he continued.
    “Leanne and I dated for almost a year. Then it was over and eventually she began seeing Lonzo. When I saw them that night it was the first time in months. And when he hit her I just reacted.”
    Dipping the cloth into the water then lifting it up to her shoulder, he let the water drip down her chest and arms. If she was uncomfortable, it only showed in the quick jolt of her chest. She never spoke a word. Eli continued to rinse the upper portion of her body, then soaped the cloth again and washed the lower parts, being as gentle as he had been before. He did not continue with his explanation even though there was more in his mind about what happened, more thoughts, concerns, regrets. He’d reenacted that scene so many times.
    From the moment he’d first struck Lonzo, until the last punch to the back of the man’s head as he was crawling on the floor. It was straight to his skull, his sharp teeth bared but not penetrating—because while he was the cat in every other aspect, his human body was still intact. The man had died and Eli had been arrested that night. Two weeks later, while he was out on bail, he’d gone to see Leanne, apologies on his lips. But it was too late. That’s what her letter said, the one that lay next to her lifeless body strewn naked across her bed. She’d overdosed on pain pills. And the guilt had hung around Eli’s neck like metal chains.
    “You killed him to protect her.”
    Her voice was soft, her fingers wet as they touched his cheek. He’d been staring down into the water for who knew how long.